At time of economic pain, veterans win support
According to a recent edition of Hannah News, while many bills remain stagnant due to a sharply divided Ohio General Assembly, one group not being ignore by lawmakers is the state’s veterans:
“In a legislative session where few bills pass and bicameral consensus can be rare, veterans and military initiatives are drawing lots of attention and support from lawmakers of the 128th General Assembly. The passage of several bills aimed at service members' interests continues a special focus begun in the previous Legislature, which enacted Gov. Ted Strickland's proposal to strengthen advocacy for those who served and their families by creating the Department of Veterans Services. The bills have cut through the typical partisan divide, with the measures usually drawing unanimous support in at least one chamber and dissenters numbering a mere handful.” (Hannah News Service, Aug. 2010)As the report indicates, a number of provisions have passed that are helping out veterans in Ohio, including a constitutional amendment that will bring a major bonus program to veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. OCSEA reported on these bonuses in a recent Union Bulletin Board Network flier.

